The consumer market increasingly demands products that are bio-derived, sustainable or “green.” This demand has resulted in a growing interest in processes for making products that are produced—at least in part—from a renewable resource, or products that include some form of post-consumer recycled material, or perhaps offer improved recycling pathways.
Many commercially important polymers such as polystyrenes, polyesters, and nylons have come to be perceived negatively by consumers because they are conventionally made from non-renewable, aromatic hydrocarbons. For example, polystyrene resins and copolymers are used, in the production of packaging, automotive parts, and insulated containers and have few recycling options. Likewise, polyesters such as polyethylene terephthalate are widely used in packaging, such as in water bottles and soft-drink bottles, and are also viewed negatively by consumers. The same consumer perception problem may apply to phenolic resins used in the production of coatings, and nylon which has many applications including packaging, which are also among the polymers that are produced from aromatic hydrocarbons.
Presently, aromatic hydrocarbons are almost entirely produced from petroleum distillates, particularly naphtha, and are therefore not renewably sourced. Thus, there remain significant challenges to producing aromatic hydrocarbons, and the polymers and products produced therefrom, entirely or partially from bio-derived feedstocks. Even if a portion of the aromatic hydrocarbon feedstock used to make the polymers could be sourced from a renewable, bio-derived material, much of the consumer perception problem could be addressed.